1. Field
The disclosed concept pertains generally to heat and corrosion protection devices and, more particularly, to devices used to protect circuit breaker terminals, terminal screw threads, connecting cables, and the like, from heat and corrosion caused by high temperature gases. The disclosed concept further pertains to circuit breakers. The disclosed concept also pertains to methods of protecting circuit breaker terminals, terminal screw threads, connecting cables, and the like.
2. Background Information
Circuit breakers function to interrupt the flow of electric current when an overload or short circuit is detected within a power circuit. When the circuit breaker interrupts the overload or short circuit current, an arc is generated, which creates exhaust gases of high temperature. These ionized exhaust gases can damage the terminal lug of the circuit breaker by causing corrosion. Additionally, the heated exhaust gases can damage the circuit breaker terminal lug by causing connecting cables to melt onto the terminal lug. Corrosion of the terminal lug coupled with melted cable material can damage terminal lug screw threads rendering the threads and terminal lug unusable.
When the cabling connected to a circuit breaker melts onto the terminal lug, such that removal thereof becomes difficult, it is standard practice to cut the damaged cabling. Additionally, when circuit breaker terminal lugs have degraded to such a degree that corrosion and cable melt have made the terminal lug and threads therein unusable, it is standard practice to replace the terminal lug, or in some cases, the entire circuit breaker. Information relevant to attempts to address these problems are found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,008. However, it is believed that the teachings found in this Patent suffer from the fact that it is not easily adaptable to interface between a commercial circuit breaker and its terminal lug.
Also, several manufacturers of industrial circuit breakers have produced “terminal shields”. These shields are not to be confused with the device to be described hereinbelow. In contrast to the device described by the disclosed concept, “terminal shields” lie between the internal phases of a circuit breaker and protect each phase from the arc of another phase. It is believed that such terminal shields fail to properly address or protect external circuit breaker terminal lugs and connecting cables from such arcing events.
Consequently, a need exists in the art for a method, apparatus, and device capable of preventing such terminal lug degradation or corrosion.
There is room for improvement in circuit breakers.
There is also room for improvement in circuit breaker terminal lugs.
There is further room for improvement in methods of protecting circuit breaker terminal lugs.